Book of Selichot by Jacques Judah Lyons written in Surinam

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Letter to Jacques Judah Lyons and notes on Hebrew grammar by Joshua Seixas

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Various letters to Jacques Judah Lyons

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Biblical evidence from Obadiah and Psalm 137 for an Edomite treaty betrayal of Judah in the sixth century B.C.E.

Abstract: Focusing on Obadiah and Psalm 137, this article provides biblical evidence for an Edomite treaty betrayal of Judah during the Babylonian crisis ca. 588–586 B.C.E. After setting a context that includes the use of treaties in the ancient Near East to establish expectations for political relationships and the likelihood that Edom could operate as a political entity in the Judahite Negev during the Babylonian assault, this article demonstrates that Obadiah’s poetics include a density of inverted form and content (a reversal motif) pointing to treaty betrayal. Obadiah’s modifications of Jeremiah 49, a text with close thematic and terminological parallels, evidence an Edomite treaty betrayal of Judah. Moreover, the study shows that Obadiah is replete with treaty allusions. A study of Psalm 137 in comparison with Aramaic treaty texts from Sefire reveals that this difficult psalm also evidences a treaty betrayal by Edom and includes elements appropriate for treaty curses. The article closes with a discussion of piecemeal data from a few other biblical texts, a criticism of the view that Edom was innocent during the Babylonian crisis, and a suggestion that this treaty betrayal may have contributed to the production of some anti-Edom biblical material.

Judah Benjamin: marginalized outsider or admitted insider?

Judah Benjamin (1811-1884) was one of the greatest of nineteenth century lawyers. This article analyses how a young man who might have been marginalized in society because of the circumstances of his birth, ethnic origin and religious identity rose to prominence in law, politics and business in the United Kingdom and the United States.

Decline and fall of the Kingdom of Judah

by T.K. Cheyne

Letter from Judah Monis to the Harvard Corporation, 1734 June 1

One-page handwritten letter from Judah Monis to the Corporation discussing the potential long-term losses associated with a plan to advance twenty-five percent of the cost of the Hebrew Grammar to the College.

Letter from Judah Monis to the Harvard Corporation, 1735 October 3

Two folio-sized leaves containing an October 3, 1735 letter from Judah Monis to the Harvard Corporation requesting an increased "reward" for the Hebrew Grammar and an increased salary. The document includes a financial outline of a "Scheme for 30 Years."

Letter from Judah Monis to the Harvard Corporation, 1729 March 24

A half-page handwritten letter from Judah Monis to the Harvard Corporation on one folio-sized leaf requesting that his service with the College be extended.

Letter from Judah Monis to the Harvard Corporation, 1732 September 27

A half-page handwritten letter from Judah Monis to the Harvard Corporation on an octavo-sized leaf requesting a salary increase.

Petition of Judah Monis to the Harvard Corporation, 1733 September 14

A half-page handwritten request from Judah Monis to the Harvard Corporation on a folio-sized leaf requesting a salary increase due to the high cost of living. The petition was read to the Corporation on October 5, 1733.

Order for the salary of Judah Monis, 1725 October 21

Small slip of paper containing an order from President Benjamin Wadsworth to Treasurer Edward Hutchinson to pay Judah Monis's salary for half of one year.

Rabbinical manuscripts of Judah Monis, ca. 1700s

This leather-bound volume contains ten handwritten Hebrew texts presumably compiled by Judah Monis in the early 18th century. The pieces range from three to 150 pages on different sized leaves and appear to be in multiple hands. The last page of the volume has the struck-through inscription, "Judah Monis' Book" and accompanies a 44-page text. The texts are unattributed and undated, but have been identified as transcriptions of cabalistic writings and include a short biography of Isaac Luria (1533-1572) and extracts from the work of Luria, Hayyim ben Joseph Vital, Jacob ben Hayyim Zemah, Abraham ben Isaac of Granada, and Naphtali Bachrach. The transcriptions appear to be unattributed and undated.